Prime Minister Boris Johnson praises NHS staff after Doncaster Royal Infirmary leak as Labour call on Government to deliver new hospital for town

Don Valley MP Nick Fletcher raised the issue in Parliament with the PM on Wednesday during Prime Minister’s Questions.

Due to a large water leak within the Women’s and Children’s Hospital at Doncaster Royal Infirmary, staff had to evacuate the area to safely move patients. Nobody was hurt but South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue attended the incident.

Mr Johnson, on the DRI incident, said: “I want to thank all the staff at Doncaster Royal Infirmary for what they did and the emergency services dealing with the incident (on Tuesday night) and I’m glad to take that opportunity.”

The incident comes just days after local government secretary Robert Jenrick visited the would-be site of a proposed new hospital in the town on land close to Waterfront and Doncaster College.

The minister gave warm words on the proposal despite the plan being initially snubbed in the first round of new hospital allocations.

Senior Labour party figures in Doncaster, in response to Mr Jenrick’s visit, last Friday, said the Government ‘makes big promises’ to Doncaster but ‘fails to deliver.

In a joint statement from Labour mayoral candidate Ros Jones and Doncaster MPs Ed Miliband and Rosie Winterton, they said: “Another election, another visit from a Tory minister and more promises. The problem is that this government makes big promises to Doncaster and fails to deliver.

“Where is the new hospital that Boris Johnson Matt Hancock and Nick Fletcher promised? Where is the kind of investment we need to make up for 50 percent cuts in budget during a decade of austerity.

“The Government pretends to be standing up for Doncaster but their priorities are the few at the top of society not the people of this borough.”

The Prime Minister was also asked publicly to support Tory mayoral candidate James Hart for which Mr Johnson did.

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